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Green Building Framing

Green Framing Resource

Framing is the skeleton of a home. Wood is one of the best suited and most renewable materials used in construction. With new advances in framing, projects can now use less wood, resources and save money at the same time.

Advanced Framing Reduces Waste

During the 1970’s energy crisis, the National Association of Home Builder’s Research Foundcation conducted studies to identify what structural configuration was necessary to maintain superior strength and allow the maximum insulation in wall cavities to improve energy efficiency. The result was called “Optimal Value Engineering” (OVE).

The basics of OVE:

Walls are framed with 2x6s on 24-in centers rather than 2x4s on 16-in. center

New Framing Materials

There’s a tremendous diversity in the materials, techniques and traditions that go into the building the frame of a house. These new materials all have their advocates and they all have something to offer sustainable building. A few of these new materials are identified and defined below.

Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (AAC) – takes the place of a number of components used in standard stick-frame—wood, insulation, house wrap, and drywall—all in a single product.

Certified Wood – certification bodies like the Forest Steward Council (FSC) and the American Forest and Paper Association’s Sustainable Forest Initiative (SFI) can ensure the wood you are using to frame a home is harvested sustainably.

Engineered Lumber – use wood fiber more efficiently than solid sawn lumber, and they can be made from wood species that regenerate themselves.

Steel studes with Recycle Content – made with recycled materials and are also dead straight, so walls and ceilings are true.

Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) – combine insulation and structure in a single product. They are a sandwich of insulating foam and oriented strand board that can be used for floors, walls, and roofs. In the book, read how one of the authors used structural insulated panels (SIPs) to build his office in January before the snow fell.